ECR MEPs have welcomed tonight’s trilogue agreement on the CAP simplification package, calling it "a long-overdue victory for common sense” and “a sign that Europe is finally listening to its farmers again."

Veronika Vrecionová MEP, Chair of the Agriculture Committee and ECR shadow rapporteur for the file, said: “I am happy about the result, even if it could have been more ambitious. What matters is that we are finally simplifying, not complicating. Farmers deserve trust, clear rules, and time to breathe. This agreement shows that Europe can listen to its farmers again.”

She added:

“The new rules will be temporary — valid for two years — but they can make a real difference. Let us now ensure that the next CAP reform is built on realism.”

Ondřej Krutílek MEP, who represented the ECR Group in the final round of trilogue negotiations, underlined the practical benefits. He said:

“This is about making the CAP workable again. We secured a commitment to review problematic guidance under the Good Agricultural and Environmental Conditions (GAEC 5), to cut pointless controls for small and medium-sized farms, and to ensure that organic farms — both certified and in conversion — are automatically recognised as meeting several requirements. The ECR will continue fighting for rules that make sense on the ground.

“Europe’s farmers need trust and clarity — not another round of Green Deal experiments. Today’s agreement must be a starting point for a truly simplified and stable CAP after 2028, restoring the link between EU policy and everyday reality in Europe’s countryside.”

The new package introduces a limit of one on-the-spot check per year, it raises lump-sum payments for small farmers from EUR 1 250 to EUR 3 000, and reduces penalties and unnecessary controls for farms managing between 10 and 30 hectares.

“We have to listen to farmers,” Vrecionová said. “They are the backbone of Europe’s food security and deserve policies that help them produce — not regulations that hold them back.”

The plenary vote on the agreement is expected in late November.